A lot of gluten free food options lack for a certain something in the taste department. However, Envirokidz Panda Puffs Cereal from Nature's Path happens to be one product that I actually think tastes as good or possibly even better than "regular" breakfast cereals.

About Envirokidz Panda Puffs Cereal
The Envirokidz cereals are "kiddy cereals" that are an organic alternative to popular sugar cereals (like captain crunch). Among their cereals they offer a handful that are not just organic, they are also Gluten Free and Panda Puffs is one of these. I buy Panda Puffs in the "Nature's Market" section of my grocery. I've also purchased it in a 3-pack at Whole Foods or Wegmans and saved a little bit of money by buying in bulk. Being an organic cereal a box of this costs a bit more than regular grocery aisle cereals, but not significantly so. Normally a 10.6 oz box of Panda Puffs is around $3.50, not too bad. A box lasts my kids about a week, give or take. The box is colorful with fun illustrations of pandas on the front and cool facts about pandas as well as info about preserving the environment on the back of the box. The company also donates a portion of their sales to environmental causes*.

Ingredients wise, I purchase this cereal mainly because it is gluten free. It is also completely organic, vegetarian, kosher and has no trans-fats. All of the ingredients in this are sourced from 3 specific organic farms that use no harmful pesticides nor chemical fertilizer.

Here's what is is in Panda Puffs (as listed on the product website):

Organic corn meal, organic evaporated cane juice, organic peanut butter (peanuts, salt), organic expeller-pressed canola oil and/or organic soybean oil, sea salt, tocopherols (natural vitamin E) added to preserve freshness. May contain traces of peanuts, tree nuts, or soy.


Panda Puffs Time!
This cereal most reminds me in taste to Peanut Butter Captain Crunch, but the cereal itself is little yellow crunchy balls that look similar to the Kix brand. They have a great taste and the animals on the box have kid appeal. When given a choice of cereal to eat, even my daughter who is not on the gluten free diet will choose to eat "the panda cereal". Having tasted it, I can see why the kids like it. Panda Puffs are very crunchy and have a yummy peanut butter flavor. Now, they can have a "fun" kids cereal that is organic and even though its gluten-free it doesn't taste like sawdust.

My daughter eats her Panda Puffs with cow's milk but my son cannot have the casein from milk so we use either Rice Milk or Soy Milk. Panda Puffs remains crunchy in milk for long time before becoming soggy. Normally my kids gobble it down fast anyways! I also suggest slicing up a banana with your Panda Puffs for a really yummy breakfast that my kids devour. Plus, adding some fresh fruit adds in some extra nutritional value since this isn't a fortified cereal. Kids will also enjoy eating Panda Puffs as a dry snack that is easy to eat and not too high in calories or fat. (3/4 cup dry =130 calories, 2g of fat)

My kids are both big animal lovers and so I know they like the Pandas on the box which look like their Panda webkinz virtual pets. You can also find fun kids activities including coloring sheets and animal facts at the Envirokidz website. I went on the website to check what other Gluten Free products were also in this brand and my son had a blast exploring all the animals (they have photos of animals with fact sheets and links you can click on to "listen" to the animals). My husband made fun of the whole educational cereal thing, but you know - to kids the picture and what is on the box DOES matter.

All in all, we love Panda Puffs. If you are looking for a good tasting gluten free cereal for your kids (or yourself) check out the Envirokidz Panda Puffs.

**1% of EnviroKidz annual sales gets donated to endangered species, habitat conservation & environmental education for kids.

www.envirokidz.com

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